Night before or morning of?

[SmokinAl]

Your looking at probably 6-7 hours cook time.
If the IT got to 140 in 5-6 hours, your probably just fine, and I would guess that it did.
But let's wait & see what the experts have to say.
Al

 

[daveomak]

Pam and Jim, morning.... Hindsight is 20-20... More charcoal for a longer cook time would have been good.. We are done with that.....
Now fort he technical stuff....
Because the meat reached 145 IT, it was "probably" at that temp for a long time, or a higher temp... That's very good...

Articles about temperature and death of pathogens.... Read the 2 articles.....

http://www.hi-tm.com/Documents/Turkey.pdf

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t...a-turkey-food-safety-haccp-test-study.237911/


Thermal death times and temperatures.... of some pathogens....

The chart below shows 2 very important things....
1. At lower temperatures, than previously noted of by the USDA, pathogens will die....
2. At times, longer than previously noted by the USDA, additional pathogens will die.....
My thoughts on the above... The USDA did not want folks to think or didn't trust them to think...

From the HACCP Turkey study and the 2 charts presented.... When cooking, meats as described, at 130 ish, pathogens begin to die... as the temperature rises, they die faster... When an internal temperature is reached that begin to kill pathogens, the longer it is held at that temperature, more pathogens die... Hold a temperature long enough at the correct temperature and it will be safe to eat... That's NOT to say all pathogens will be dead.... ONLY to say the remaining amount of pathogens will be safe to consume by a healthy middle aged person... Children and older folks, with health problems, do not fall in that category....
From what I can gather, ONLY moist meats can be heat treated.... dehydrating to a dry state has other effects on pathogens.. puts them in suspended animation of sorts where they can survive a very long time... and rehydration at a suitable temperature for regrowth can make them active again... Jerky is a prime example of pathogen regrowth after dehydration..

LOG reduction.....
How to measure Log reduction
The reduction of pathogens is measured in Log – Logarithm.

“Log reduction stands for 10-fold (one decimal) or 90% reduction in numbers of live bacteria.”

At a 4 Log reduction, the number of pathogens is 10,000 times less.

5 Log reduction means the number of pathogens is reduced, times 100,000.

7 Log reduction means the number of pathogens is reduced, times 10,000,000

I know the above goes against what most have been taught.... I'm not here to debate the above... If you want to keep you previous "food safety ideas" that's fine.... This is "food for thought"... serious thinking....
If you find yourself in a "pickle" when cooking stuff... Keep the above in mind... Holding meat for a longer time at a lower temp., makes it perfectly safe to eat... and moist..

 

[SmokinAl]

Thanks Dave!
Al

 

[dls1]

OK. I'm a little nervous now. I started it last night using the minion method. I put it on a little after midnight. I woke up and the smoker was a tad under 200 degrees. The internal temp on the pork is about 145. I added some more coals to get the temp up. But, I'm concerned that it might not have made it out of the danger zone quickly enough to be safe to eat. What should I do?

I wouldn't be too concerned if I were you. You're results of your experience overnight corresponds pretty closely with what I mentioned in an earlier post (#12) which was "I usually start around 11:00 PM in my smoker (Cookshack electric) set at 200F. At 7:00 AM, the IT is usually around 150F, and I turn the temp up to 225F."

You'll be fine.

 

[PamAndJim]

I wouldn't be too concerned if I were you. You're results of your experience overnight corresponds pretty closely with what I mentioned in an earlier post (#12) which was "I usually start around 11:00 PM in my smoker (Cookshack electric) set at 200F. At 7:00 AM, the IT is usually around 150F, and I turn the temp up to 225F."

Yes. I re-read your post and realized that I did exactly as you described, even if by accident.

Thank you Dave. That is great info, and you're right, lesson learned for next time. Next more charcoal in the ring and more hot coals to get start with .

You'll be fine.

 

[noboundaries]

This has been a fun read. Since it is 3:30 PM as I type, and 76% of the US population lives east of the Mississippi, there's a good chance they are sitting down to eat while my words appear on my screen.

Personally, I absolutely despise timing a long cook to finish at a specific time. I can do it, but just don't like to. That's a HUGE reason why I'll never get into competition.

I'd rather give myself a ton of time and finish early, storing the meat properly then serve it relaxed and happy.

 

[PamAndJim]

Well, I plowed ahead and finished the smoke. It turned out great and everyone loved it. Thank you all for your help.

2018-04-15_11-01-56 by loudfocus2, on Flickr

 

[chef jimmyj]

Late to the party but Dave MORE than covered it. Great work Dave...JJ